


Cap Meets Strange

by notjustmom



Series: Random Strangeness [2]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Doctor Strange (2016), Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Coffee Shop, F/M, Gen, M/M, Party Fic, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Pre-Slash, Team Iron Man, hospital fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-06
Updated: 2019-04-11
Packaged: 2020-01-05 19:27:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18372560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notjustmom/pseuds/notjustmom
Summary: This is a collection of one-shots, post Infinity War; possible scenarios when Cap meets Strange. I do tend to write Ironstrange stories, so if you are Team Cap, you probably want to give them a miss. I am Team Iron Man, though not irrationally so, most of the time.





	1. Chapter 1

“Can I help you, Captain Rogers?” 

Steve managed to recover quickly, and cleared his throat, as the figure emerged from the shadows and into the faint light of the television. “You must be Doctor Strange.” Nebula had described the battle on Titan in such precise detail that Steve shivered as if he had been there himself. 

“I am.” The sorcerer ran his eyes over him and waited for him to answer his original question.

“I know I'm the last person...” Steve began, then knew he would have to get to the point quickly. “I thought -”

“Did you.” The voice murmured softly so as to not disturb the figure in the bed next to him, but Steve heard the warning in the two syllables.

“I’m sure he told you -”

“He told me nothing about you, other than he was not in a position to ask for your assistance when it was needed. Not that it would have made a difference as far as the end result is concerned. However, I do believe it would have made a difference to him if you had been by his side, he was left very much on his own, as you well know.”

“That was my fault.”

“And his, but mostly this falls on me.”

Steve nodded at the chair on the opposite wall and Stephen shrugged, then nodded. He pulled the chair to the end of Tony’s bed, and finally made himself look at him. All things considered, he looked -

“He is fine. In all the ways that matter to the medical profession, he is slightly dehydrated, and could stand to eat a few hundred cheeseburgers, but no bones are broken, the wounds he suffered have healed.”

“So, he won’t wake up because -”

“I guess the best way to explain his condition is -”

“Mourning. He’s in mourning.”

Stephen looked away from Tony’s still form and glanced at the man at the end of the bed with new interest. “Even with my skills, I have not been able to get through to him, to let him know that he did not fail. Perhaps your voice will get through, where mine did not.”

“But -”

“He regrets how your friendship ended. I do believe if given enough time, he would have reached out to you himself, but the attack came on too suddenly that afternoon. He did carry your phone with him, perhaps that will mean something to you.”

“That damn flip phone?”

“Yes. I need some coffee, may I get you something, Captain?”

“Coffee would be great, thank you.” Steve watched him leave the room, and close the door behind him. He didn’t need to be told of the trust he was given, but he also understood that the sorcerer probably had eyes and ears everywhere. He rubbed his face, then sighed as he got up from his seat and moved to the chair where Stephen had been sitting for the last few days. 

He looked at the face he had known so well, and realized how much he had actually missed him; his appreciation of the absurd, even the attitude, the arguments. 

As men, they were so different, from different eras, so many of their fights sprung from how they saw the world and their places in it. He knew he would always be a soldier, while Tony was a scientist, a logician, essentially a thoughtful man who became the greater warrior because of circumstance and the greed of others. They had never talked much, except to argue, and he thought back to Tony’s last offer - his ‘olive branch’ as he called it - he wondered if he had just agreed then, could he, could they have stopped what happened later if they had fought together as Steve had once promised him. They had lost on their own, and only because of Tony, were they able to all come home once again, and he didn’t know how, all that he knew was that he owed him everything, especially a real apology.

He looked down at his hands and remembered the last time he had touched him. He liked to tell himself that he had fought him only to defend Bucky, but if he were honest, he had wanted to fight Tony ever since the first time they had met. He had wanted to prove he was stronger, better, but even as he was carrying Bucky to safety, he had known that Tony hadn’t been at full power, he had been hurt at the airport, he had been driven by anger and feelings of betrayal, as he was forced to witness the last moments of his parents’ lives. He had arrived in Siberia in spite of everything to help them and Steve had let him and himself down.

“Damn. I’m sorry, Tony. If you can hear me, I need to tell you, you need to know, you didn’t fail. 

You are home, Nebula brought you home, I still don’t know how you managed it, but you found a way, maybe you don’t even know how, but everyone is safe, everyone is home. Strange has been sitting by your side since you got back, he’s been watching you like a hawk, for some reason he is trusting me to help bring you back, maybe he thinks if you hear my voice, you might get angry enough to wake up, I don’t know. 

I’ve had a lot of time to think, Tony, and I’m sorry for everything - I’m sorry I let you down, and I’m sorry for that god-awful letter I sent with the phone. I would have gone anywhere, done anything if you had called. I came home when Banner got through, but it was too late, and it wasn’t your fault, I should have been - I was arrogant. I thought, honestly I wasn’t thinking. All I knew was that Bucky needed me, and it nearly cost me, us, everything, and I’m -’’

“Rogers, if you apologize one more time, I swear I will put the armor back on and it won’t be at forty percent this time.”

“Forty percent?”

Tony glared at him, then saw how badly he had aged since the last time he had seen him, and rolled his eyes. “You really think I was doing the best I could in Siberia? You were my friend, Rogers, at least I considered you more a friend than an enemy. Sometimes the line blurs, I suppose. You said that Strange was here? What about -”

“Peter’s fine.”

“He’s fine?” Tony whispered, then struggled to sit up.

Steve adjusted the angle of the bed and chuckled to himself. “From what I understand, Strange convinced him to go to school, somehow he knew it’s what you would have wanted him to do, he didn’t want to leave, but when Strange offered to portal him to school, he couldn’t resist.”

“Yeah. I bet. Nebula?”

“She’s good, Rhodey gave her a place at the compound for as long she wants, she and Vision are hitting it off, he was teaching her chess last time I saw them.”

“She got me home. I had given up and she talked me out of it. Can you find Strange -”

“I’m here.”

Steve shook his head and took the coffee from the sorcerer’s hand, then quietly slipped from the room.

 

Stephen took his seat again and gently held the trembling hand that reached out for him. “Strange. You are here? I’m not hallucinating you? I didn’t just hallucinate Rogers, right? Please, tell me - Peter?”

“Peter’s in class, Physics, I believe. I told him I would let him know when you woke up, I thought you would want him to finish the school day, and you need to sleep. Comas don’t count as sleep, Stark.”

Tony rolled his eyes, but was too exhausted to argue with him. “Thank you, for trusting him - Rogers -”

“I didn’t, I don’t. But I know enough about you to know what you needed. I knew you needed to hear it from him. You believed I would say anything to make you wake up, but if Rogers told you, someone you thought had no love for you. Especially Rogers, you would fight hard enough to come back.”

“You’re brilliant -”

“No. I failed you on Titan. I should have been strong enough -”

“You broke your rules to save me, you had one job, Strange, just one job and you blew it because of me.”

“I knew you would find a way.”

“No, you didn’t.”

Stephen lifted his eyes to finally meet Tony’s and blinked at what he saw there. “Stark -”

“My name is Tony, Strange - do you think, maybe one day -” Stephen drew in a sharp breath as his eyes closed again, but Tony gave his fingers a squeeze, as he drifted off to sleep, and Stephen knew he was just taking a well-deserved nap.

“Rest well, Tony. Rest, my friend.”


	2. Version Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> another take on a possible meeting between Strange and Rogers... coffee shop version

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> for Annnguyen04

Steve had only had a glimpse of Tony when he returned. He knew he wasn't okay, how could he be, after everything? And yet, he had watched him walk off the ship and into Pepper's arms, then he disappeared into a car and was gone. He needed to find a way to talk to him. To apologize. Something. He was about to take out his wallet to pay for his regular latte and muffin when a deep voice rumbled next to him.

"Allow me."

Steve blinked at the figure, and knew immediately who he was, even in the average looking sweatshirt and jeans.

"Thank you, Mr. -"

"I prefer Doctor."

"Right, sorry." He picked up his coffee and muffin and made his way to his table, and blinked to find Strange waiting for him. He sat down across from him and took a sip of his coffee, then put it down and waited. 

"Why do you wish to speak to him?"

"That's my business, I think?"

"Did you, think?" Strange asked quietly, yet there was an undeniable hint of menace in his words.

"What do you know -"

"More than you do."

Steve snorted, then picked up his coffee again, and put it down again without taking a sip. "Wouldn't surprise me, with all your degrees. I never went to college." He was surprised to see a glint of humor in the sorcerer's eyes, before it vanished.

"I ask again, why do you wish to speak to him?"

Steve shrugged. It didn't really matter if Strange knew. Nothing really mattered all that much anymore, they had managed to survive again, though he still wasn't sure how, and everyone was back, he should be happier than he was, but he needed to make amends somehow. "I wanted to apologize to him. For before. For -"

Strange sipped at his own coffee, and Steve was struck by the calm manner of the man across from him. He had heard all about the battle on Titan, how close they had come to defeating Thanos before Strange had to sacrifice the Time Stone in order to save Stark, when it was clear they had lost. "For?"

"Past bad behavior on my part." He finally began to pick apart his muffin, he wasn't sure why he ordered it, except it was what he did, every morning, he bought a blueberry muffin and a latte, it had become routine. It was about the only thing that made sense these days. 

"What difference would it make to him now?"

Steve blinked into the blazing blue-green eyes, and shrugged again. "Probably wouldn't make a bit of difference to him. But I've had a lot of time to think over the last couple of years, and I was taught that if you make a mistake you should own up to it, and make amends if possible, so, yeah, it's more about me than it is about him. I do understand if he doesn't want to see me, I wouldn't want to see me either, in his place. Now, may I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"What business is it of yours?"

"He saved my life several times before we even arrived on Titan, and then again once we reached the planet. He fought harder than I've ever seen anyone fight before, and once the battle was over, he could have given up, but he didn't."

"He doesn't like to lose."

"No, he doesn't. If he had given up, let his grief overwhelm him as it might other people, I wouldn't be here now. I owe him."

Steve nodded, and turned his muffin into crumbs. "He saved my best friends. Don't know what he did, but he did it, and I need to make peace with him. Can you let him know? If he doesn't want to see me, that's cool." He looked up then and noticed the usual busy coffee shop had emptied, and Tony had slid into the booth next to Strange with his own mug of coffee.

"Rogers."

"Stark." Tony turned towards Strange and nodded, and Steve jumped in his seat as the Sorcerer vanished.

"Not gonna ask."

"Best not to, he likes to show off, even when he doesn't really need to."

"How are you?" Steve asked quietly.

"Retired."

"That's an answer."

"It's the truth. Promised Pep. It's a promise I intend to keep. I have to keep it. Besides I'm getting too old for this crap."

Steve laughed, "yeah, I know the feeling."

"You guys don't really need me anyway."

"I think you proved otherwise recently."

Tony shook his head. "I was just cleaning up my mess."

"Tony."

"The things I've seen, I can't unsee them. It will be a while before I'll be able to sleep like a real person, but maybe one day, I'll get there. I know we left things - things weren't good between us -"

"That's putting it mildly. Shit."

"Language, Cap."

Steve grinned, then bit his lip, and sighed. "I'll never live that down. I wanted to apologize to you, I made so many mistakes, and I went too far, I know you'll find it hard to believe, but I did consider you a friend, but Bucky -"

"Yeah, I know, Cap. He knows you like no one else does. I had time to consider everything, not much else to do, really, except to think. I talked so much to Nebula, I'm sure I owe her thousands of dollars in therapist fees. To be honest, I should have retired years ago, but after Sokovia, I wanted to make up for it somehow. But you can't make up for stuff like that. I figured that out on Titan. All anyone can do is try to move on, do better, be better. You are who you are, Cap. You have a certain way of looking at the world, it makes you, you."

"Not sure if that's good enough, anymore, Tony."

"Maybe not, but the world needs a soldier, a leader. I was never a soldier, and as you reminded me from time to time, I was never one for the sacrifice play."

"Damn. You remember everything I ever said to you, don't you?"

"Yep. Pretty much. I always found an escape, a way out, but I'm done this time. For real. I'm ready for a relatively normal life, and I need to know you aren't sitting in a coffee shop, moping around, when there are things to do. The world isn't perfect, not by a long shot, people still need heroes, Cap. They still need you." He finished his coffee, then smiled ruefully at Steve. "I gotta go. Pep gets nervous if I'm out of her sight for longer than ten minutes."

"Thank you, Tony." Steve held out his hand and after a moment, Tony grabbed his arm and held on tightly, then let it go.

"Find a way to be happy, Cap."

Steve nodded then watched as Strange appeared again, helped Tony from his seat and through a golden ring of light, and then they were gone, as if they hadn't been there. He blinked once and the coffee shop was full of people again, and the coffee in his hand was still hot.


	3. Chapter 3

"Be nice tonight, please? For me?" Tony asked quietly as he washed Stephen's hair.

"I'm always nice." Stephen growled under his breath.

"Pretend."

"Pretend what?"

"That you don't know anything about what happened between us - before."

"Before?" Stephen turned in Tony's arms and kissed him gently, then hissed out, "you mean when he nearly killed you?"

"I nearly killed him too. It was an off day for both of us."

"Tony -"

"He made sure no one forgot me, helped to get you home, for me. For us." Stephen nodded, then kissed him again, this time reminding them of what they had both missed until Tony drew back and whispered, "maybe leave Cloakie at home tonight? I know she likes to show off, but I think you'll make a big enough impression in your new tux, hmmm?"

Stephen rolled his eyes, then groaned as Tony's fingers were in his hair again. "I promise to do my best. Just for you, and because you said please."

"Thank you. Now, we still have a couple of hours, until we have to be there..."

"Oh, yeah? Want to be fashionably late, do you?"

"Just a bit... yeah."

 

Steve looked up as a hush fell over the room as Tony and Stephen walked in an hour and a half after the party began; he met Tony's eyes and was relieved to see him smile, he was even more pleased to see he had put on some of the weight he had lost since he had last seen him, weeks ago. It was the other man who worried him; even in the tux, which served to make him seem thinner and less powerful than he was in reality, he had heard stories, and knew he would be aware of his past history with Tony. He put down his drink and shrugged as Thor raised an eyebrow at him. He needed to deal with this sooner than later.

"I'm Steve." He had noticed Strange kept his hands in his pockets and knew why, so he didn't offer him his hand. "You must be Stephen. I've heard a lot about you."

"As I have about you."

"I'm going to get us some drinks, let you two get acquainted, hmm?"

Steve watched as Tony schmoozed his way across the room. "Same old Tony."

"No. He isn't."

"I meant -"

"I know what you meant. He's forgiven you, and he doesn't forgive easily. He had a lot of time to think even before his time away. I will never be able to repay the debt I owe you bringing him home, and taking a chance on rescuing the rest of us. We wouldn't be-" Stephen caught Tony watching him and blew him a kiss, then grinned as Tony flushed a charming shade of red. "He's changed me, Rogers, for the better, and he wouldn't be the man he is, without you, without everyone who is here tonight. So, because he asked me to, I'm willing to give you a chance. Just know I can send you to any corner of the universe at any time; it is generally frowned upon to use our powers for personal issues, but exceptions can be made."

"Understood."

"Good. How about those Dodgers?"

Steve couldn't help but appreciate the man's gift for snark, and understood what Tony saw in him. "Haven't been to a game since they moved to L.A, the prices of tickets these days..." He turned to see Tony walking towards them, and mumbled, "I'm sorry I let him down, it won't happen again."

"I know, Rogers. I know."


End file.
